Pontus Marine LTD- Leader of fishing industry in Somaliland

July 5, 2015

Refugees from Yemen’s conflict put heavy strain on fragile Somaliland

Refugees from Yemen’s conflict put heavy strain on fragile Somaliland

By Katie Riordan - The National- Hargeisa, Somaliland // The conflict in Yemen has driven thousands of refugees across the Gulf of Aden to Somaliland placing a great financial and social strain on the fragile region.

Since the war escalated in March, close to 5,000 refugees – as of mid-June – have landed in Somaliland, which declared itself a nation in 1991 but is still recognised only as an autonomous region of Somalia by the international community.

The conflict has also damaged Somaliland’s vital livestock trade. As the Eid Al Fitr holiday approaches, a time when exports to Yemen and the Arabian Gulf hit their peak, the industry is bracing for severe losses.

The refugees arriving here are Yemenis as well as Somalis who had fled to Yemen to escape the conflicts that tore apart their country.

Both groups often feel forsaken among Somaliland’s population of 3.5 million.

“They keep shouting at us and asking ‘What can you do for us?’” said Hussam Al Eyashi, who along with other members of the Yemeni community in Hargeisa, Somaliland’s capital, has been assisting those escaping the war.

The former accountant, who has lived in Somaliland for five years and until recently was the head of the Yemen Community in Somaliland Centre, admits there is not much he can do to help.

Recently, he received a call from a doctor at the Hargeisa International Hospital whose patient, Ahlam Yaslam Omar, had arrived from Yemen a week earlier and was suffering from abdominal bleeding. The doctors said they were no longer able to keep treating her and Mr Al Eyashi set about trying to find another hospital.

The 66-year-old left her home in the city of Taez on May 26, boarding a boat to leave Yemen’s deepening crisis behind. Her health began to plummet during the 50 hours at sea crossing the Gulf of Aden.

At the hospital, her four children, fearing their mother would pass away, scrambled to find a country that would accept her. Somaliland’s unrecognised status as a nation means there are no embassies in the capital to issue visas. In a rush to get to a hospital, Ms Omar had failed to register as a refugee upon arrival, so the United Nations refugee agency, the UNHCR, was unable to assist her.

Eventually, after much bureaucracy, she was able to fly to Djibouti for treatment. Mr Al Eyashi said her case highlighted the challenges faced by the refugees relying on overstretched community support.

“Everybody is doing as much as he can,” he said. “Everyone has two or three families living with them.”

The majority of the refugees have roots in southern and central Somalia, an area still overshadowed by extreme poverty, clan violence and the brutal militant group, Al Shabab.

Refugees with Yemeni passports, like Ms Omar, make up a smaller number of the influx but are close to hitting the 1,000 mark, according to the UNHCR.

While Somaliland’s comparative stability is an attractive alternative to Somalia or the collapsing infrastructure in Yemen, the region’s own challenges have proven tough for those seeking a temporary refuge.

The UNHCR together with other aid agencies is supplying travel stipends for those that need help reaching their next destination.

The refugees “face a hard decision of where to go next”, said Abdirisaq Mohamed Saed, the head of the international cooperation department at Somaliland’s foreign ministry. “It’s a tough question as to where to live. They need consultation.”

But the Somaliland government itself faces an even bigger problem. The interruption of shipping in the Gulf of Aden because of the conflict has badly affected exports of livestock – the backbone of Somaliland’s economy, accounting for 40 per cent of its GDP. After Saudi Arabia, Yemen was Somaliland’s second largest importer of animals.